A new bronze statue of Barbara Rose Johns, the teen civil rights activist whose leadership helped set the stage for the Brown v. Board of Education decision, now stands in the U.S. Capitol.
This marks a historic milestone in national remembrance and celebration of civil rights history.
The life-sized sculpture, created by artist Steven Weitzman, was unveiled on Dec. 16, 2025, in Emancipation Hall and will be placed in the Capitol Crypt as part of the National Statuary Hall Collection, joining national icons like George Washington as one of two statues representing the Commonwealth of Virginia.
Honoring a Teen Leader Who Helped Change America
Barbara Rose Johns’ story is one of remarkable courage and conviction. At just 16 years old, she organized a student strike at Robert Russa Moton High School in Farmville, Virginia, in 1951 to protest unequal school conditions faced by Black students, including overcrowding and lack of resources.
In the statue, Johns is depicted in mid-stride, speaking passionately to her classmates with a tattered textbook in hand, symbolizing the very educational inequalities she challenged.
A lectern beside her and the wood flooring evoke the auditorium where she inspired hundreds of fellow students to walk out—an act of nonviolent protest that helped catalyze legal action against school segregation.
That protest ultimately became part of the Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka case, the landmark 1954 Supreme Court decision that struck down racial segregation in public schools nationwide.
A Fitting Replacement and Nationwide Recognition
The new statue replaces a long-standing figure of Confederate General Robert E. Lee, which had represented Virginia in the Capitol for 111 years before it was removed in 2020 during nationwide reevaluations of Confederate symbolism.
At the dedication ceremony, which drew bipartisan leaders, Virginia officials and more than 200 members of Johns’ family, speakers praised her bravery and lasting impact. The statue’s base bears her name, dates and a powerful question she posed during the Moton strike:
“Are we going to just accept these conditions? Or are we going to do something about it?”
An inscription from Isaiah 11:6—“…and a little child shall lead them”—captures the spirit of youth leadership and moral conviction that came to define her role in history.
Legacy Beyond the Capitol
Barbara Rose Johns went on to live a full life beyond her early activism. After high school she continued her education, married and raised children, and worked as a librarian in Philadelphia public schools.
However, her youthful stand for justice reverberated far beyond her lifetime, illuminating the power of grassroots action and the ongoing struggle for equality.
The statue’s placement in the Capitol serves not only to honor Johns’ enduring legacy but also to inspire future generations about the importance of standing up for justice, equity and the fundamental rights of all citizens.
